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Augustus Caesar

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Gaius Julius Caesar Octavianus , ( 62 BC - August 19, A.D. 14 ) was the first Roman Emperor. Before he became emperor, he is often referred to as Octavian in English speaking countries. He was accorded the name or title Augustus by the Senate of Rome in 27 BC, and as emperor is often referred to as Augustus Caesar ,Augustus Octavian, or simply Augustus .

Julius Caesar made provisions in his will adopting his great-nephew Gaius Octavius Thurinus as his son and heir. In the Roman custom, Octavius took his uncle's name as part of his own. At the time of Julius Caesar's death Octavianus was 18. Together with Mark Anthony and Lepidus he formed the Second Triumvirate to rule Rome. To take leadership of the Caesarian forces he returned to Rome from Greece and successfully outmaneuvered Marcus Antonius for leadership of Caesar's armies and control of his political forces, ultimately defeating Antony at the Battle of Actium on September 2 ,31 BC . He reformed the Roman state, becoming its sole ruler, although not in name ( Rome was still officially a Republic ). He was given the title Princeps (first citizen) and the title Imperator by the Roman Senate . The Roman Empire was devided into Senatorial and Imperial provinces. The Imperial provinces were on the outskirts of the Empire and held the bulk of the troops. He also created the Praetorian Guard , a 9,000 man private army for his own protection. When the Roman Pontifex Maximus Lepidus died, he also took that title, and thus became head of the Roman religion.

Octavian's military right-hand-man was Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa , and his link with the important class of the Equites or 'Equestrian class' was Gaius Maecenas . Augustus's evident intention was to have Agrippa succeed him; he arranged for Agrippa to divorce his wife and marry Julia, Augustus's daughter from his first marriage. When Agrippa died unexpectedly in 12 BC , Augustus's plans were upset. Until their deaths, Agrippa's minor sons (who were also Augustus's grandsons) Gaius and Lucius remained his heirs. His succession by his stepson and adopted heir Tiberius created the so-called Julio-Claudian dynasty from their two nomina or family names.

Ara Pacis Augustae --- the altar of the Augustan Peace

The Acts of the Divine Augustus , attributed to Augustus Caesar (summary)

Following is a summary of inscriptions that were found on two pillars in Rome . These pillars were in several Temples dedicated to the god of Rome ( Roma ). These Temples were built in honour of Augustus and the inscriptions recount the great deeds of Augustus.

At the age of nineteen, Augustus recounts that he was able to prepare an army at his own expense and with the blessing of the Senate . In that same year, the people made him consul . With this army and through other means Augustus (then known as Octavian) was able to exile and punish those individuals who had killed his adopted father Julius Caesar .

Augustus then fought many wars to expand the realm and influence of Rome. However, he wisely treated his captive states kindly; even allowing then to continue their customs and form governments so long as they paid tribute to Rome.

Augustus also mentions that he was a reluctant leader who decided to lead so long as his leadership did not break any established customs. He then states that he was made a Triumvir (of the Second Triumvirate ) and then Princeps .

Then Augustus states that he increased the number of patricians and held several censuses of the people in which the size of Roman citizenry rose by nearly one million people. However, he refused to be named Pontifex Maximus (head of the State religion) while a friend of his held that title.

His sons, Gaius and Lucius Caesar were made consuls-designate when they reached the age of fourteen and they were then made Princeps of the Youth.

Augustus then recounts how generous he was both with his own money, and with the money of Rome. Specifically, he mentions that the gifts that he gave "never came through to fewer than 250,000 men." He also mentions that he was able to help out the Public Treasury on four occasions.

Now he turns to the great building projects that he built. For example, he built the Curia (Senate House) and a temple to Apollo , and the Divine Julius. He also built a shrine near the Circus Maximus , temples of Jupiter Feretrius and the Thunderer. Augustus then shows how noble he is when he built both the Capitoline temple and the theater of Pompey without putting his name on them. He then goes into the repairs and expansions of infastructure projects -- including urban renewal.

How Augustus entertained the masses is also described in this document. For example, it describes how he funded three gladiatorial games which included the slaughter of 3500 beasts.

He ends the document with an account of conquests of the sea, Egypt and the recovery of several Roman standards.

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ID: I6878

Name: GAIUS @ OCTAVIAN JULIUS CAESAR

Prefix: Emperor

Given Name: GAIUS @ OCTAVIAN JULIUS

Surname: CAESAR

Nickname: Augustus

Sex: M

_UID: B30B2AFA5118D811BE490080C8C142CC52D2

Change Date: 18 Oct 2005

Note:

I INTRODUCTION

Augustus (63 bc- ad 14), first emperor of Rome (27 bc-ad 14), who restored unity and orderly government to the realm after nearly a century of civil wars. He presided over an era of peace, prosperity, and cultural achievement known as the Augustan Age.

Augustus was born Gaius Octavius and granted the title of Augustus by the Roman Senate, becoming the first emperor of Rome. The adopted son of Julius Caesar, he became consul after Caesar’s assassination. Augustus consolidated his power with the defeat of Antony and Cleopatra at Actium. As emperor, he instituted social reforms and encouraged education, art and literature.

Originally named Gaius Octavius, Augustus was born in Rome on September 23, 63 bc; he was the grandnephew of Julius Caesar, whom he succeeded as ruler of the Roman state. Caesar was fond of the youth and had him raised to the College of Pontifices—a major Roman priesthood—at the age of 16. When Caesar was assassinated in 44 bc, Octavius was in Illyria, where he had been sent to serve; returning to Italy, he learned that he was Caesar’s adopted heir. He consequently took the name Gaius Julius Caesar, to which historians have added Octavianus; in English, the name is usually shortened to Octavian.

II THE SECOND TRIUMVIRATE

GREAT WORKS OF LITERATURE

Tacitus: From The Annals of Imperial Rome

Cornelius Tacitus was a Roman historian who drew upon fact, rhetoric, psychology, and art in crafting The Annals of Imperial Rome. Only part of the original work has survived, but it represents the most complete literary record available about Rome from just before the death of Augustus, the first emperor, in AD 14 to the death of Nero, the fifth emperor, in AD 68. Although Tacitus claimed to be scrupulously impartial, he was easily roused to indignation, as demonstrated by these passages dealing with Augustus’s reign and Nero’s conspiracy to murder his mother, Agrippina.

Caesar’s assassination plunged Rome into turmoil. Octavian, determined to avenge his adoptive father and secure his own place, vied with Mark Antony, Caesar’s ambitious colleague, for power and honor. After some preliminary skirmishes, both political and military, during which Antony was driven across the Alps while Octavian was made senator and then consul, Octavian recognized the necessity of making peace with his rival. In late 43 bc, therefore, the two—joined by Antony’s ally, the general Marcus Aemilius Lepidus—met and formed the Second Triumvirate to rule the Roman domains. The alliance was sealed by a massive proscription, in which 300 senators and 200 knights—the triumvirs’ enemies—were slain. Among those killed was the aging orator Cicero.

Octavian and Antony next took the field against the leaders of Caesar’s assassins, Marcus Junius Brutus and Gaius Cassius Longinus, both of whom committed suicide in 42 bc, after being defeated at Philippi in Macedonia. By 40 bc the triumvirs had divided the Roman world among them. Octavian was in control of most of the western provinces and Antony of the eastern ones; Lepidus was given Africa. Although Antony and Octavian clashed over the control of Italy, they patched up their differences, and Octavian gave Antony his sister, Octavia, in marriage. In 36 BC, Sextus Pompeius, son of Pompey the Great and the last major enemy of the triumvirs, was eliminated. Octavian then forced Lepidus from power, while Antony was in the east fighting the Parthians.

The triumvirate was now breaking up. Having sent Octavia back to Rome, Antony soon married Cleopatra, whom Caesar had installed as queen of Egypt, and recognized Caesarion, her son by Caesar, as her coruler. This undercut Octavian’s position as the only son of Caesar, and war was inevitable. He defeated Antony and Cleopatra’s forces in a naval battle off Actium in 31 bc; they both killed themselves the following year. Caesarion was murdered. In 29 bc Octavian returned to Rome in triumph, at age 34 the sole master of the Roman world.

III THE FIRST CITIZEN

In 27 bc the Roman Senate gave Octavian the title Augustus (“consecrated,” or “holy”) by which he is known, and his reign has often been considered a dyarchy because of the Senate’s participation in it. The Senate bestowed on him a host of other titles and powers that had been held by many different officials in the Republic. In 36 bc he had been given the inviolability of the plebeian tribune, and in 30 bc he also received the tribunician power, which gave him the veto and control over the assemblies. In addition, the Senate granted him ultimate authority in the provinces; together with the consulship, which he held 13 times during his reign and which gave him control of Rome and Italy, this vested in him paramount authority throughout the empire. After the death of Lepidus he also became Pontifex Maximus (“chief priest”) with the consequent control of religion. The summation of his powers was the title princeps, or first citizen. Despite all this, and the title imperator (from which “emperor” is derived), Augustus was always careful not to take on the trappings of monarchy. In fact, he made much of the claim that he was restoring the Roman Republic.

A patron of the arts, Augustus was a friend of the poets Ovid, Horace, and Virgil, as well as the historian Livy. His love for architectural splendor was summed up in his boast that he “had found Rome brick and left it marble.” As a straitlaced adherent of Roman virtues in times of growing permissiveness, he attempted moral legislation that included sumptuary and marriage laws. In the economic field, he tried to restore agriculture in Italy.

Augustus’ third wife was Livia Drusilla, who had two sons, Tiberius and Drusus Germanicus, by a previous marriage. Augustus, in turn, had a daughter, Julia, by a previous wife. His heirs, however, died, one after another, leaving his stepson and son-in-law, Tiberius, to succeed him when he died at Nola on August 19, ad 14.

IV EVALUATION

Both ancient and modern writers have been ambivalent about Augustus. Some have condemned his ruthless quest for power, especially his part in the proscription at the time of the triumvirate. Others, even such a Republican diehard as Tacitus, have admitted his good points as a ruler. Modern scholars sometimes criticize his unscrupulous methods and compare him to 20th-century authoritarians, but they usually recognize his genuine achievements.

Augustus adopted Livia's son Tiberius who became his successor by promissing to let Germanicus to reign after him.

Early Career of Augustus

Augustus or Octavius (as he was called until the adoption by Caesar) was born 23 September, 63 BC. In 48 B.C. he was elected to the pontifical college. In 45 he followed Caesar to Spain. In 43 or 42 Caesar named Octavius Master of Horse. In March 44 B.C. when his great-uncle, Julius Caesar, died, Octavius discovered he had been adopted.

"Augustus" Gains Imperial Powers

Octavian styled himself "Caesar" and gathered troops (from Brundisium and along the road) as he went to Rome to have his adoption made official. There Antony prevented him from standing for office and blocked his adoption.

Through the oratory of Cicero, not only was Octavian's close to illegal command of troops legitimized, but also Antony was declared a public enemy. Octavian then marched on Rome with eight legions and was made consul in 43.

The Second Triumvirate soon formed (legally). Octavian gained control of Sardinia, Sicily, and Africa; Antony (no longer a public enemy), Cisalpine and Transalpine Gaul; M. Aemilius Lepidus, Spain and Gallia Narbonensis. They revived proscriptions, an extra-legal means of padding their treasury, and pursued those who had killed Caesar. From then on Octavian acted to secure his troops and to concentrate the power in himself.

Octavian, Antony and Cleopatra

Relations deteriorated between Octavian and Antony in 32 B.C. when Antony renounced his wife Octavia in favor of Cleopatra. Augustus took Roman troops to fight the Roman traitor and defeated him decisively in a sea battle in the Ambracian gulf, near the promontory of Actium.

The New Role of Emperor of Rome

Over the next few decades the new powers of Augustus, the one leader of Rome had to be ironed out through two constitutional settlements and then the added title of Pater Patriae father of the country that was given him in 2 B.C.

Augustus' Longevity

Despite serious illnesses, Augustus managed to outlive various men he had been grooming as successor. Augustus died in 14 A.D. and was succeeded by his son-in-law Tiberius.

Augustus

Names of Augustus

63-44 B.C.: Gaius Octavius

44-27 B.C.: Gaius Julius Caesar Octavianus (Octavian)

27 B.C. - 14 A.D.: Augustus

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Born : 23 Sep 63 BC

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Born : 23 Sep 63 BC

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Augustus (63 bc- ad 14), first emperor of Rome (27 bc-ad 14), who restored unity and orderly government to the realm after nearly a century of civil wars. He presided over an era of peace, prosperity, and cultural achievement known as the Augustan Age.

Augustus was born Gaius Octavius and granted the title of Augustus by the Roman Senate, becoming the first emperor of Rome. The adopted son of Julius Caesar, he became consul after Caesar’s assassination. Augustus consolidated his power with the defeat of Antony and Cleopatra at Actium. As emperor, he instituted social reforms and encouraged education, art and literature.

Originally named Gaius Octavius, Augustus was born in Rome on September 23, 63 bc; he was the grandnephew of Julius Caesar, whom he succeeded as ruler of the Roman state. Caesar was fond of the youth and had him raised to the College of Pontifices—a major Roman priesthood—at the age of 16. When Caesar was assassinated in 44 bc, Octavius was in Illyria, where he had been sent to serve; returning to Italy, he learned that he was Caesar’s adopted heir. He consequently took the name Gaius Julius Caesar, to which historians have added Octavianus; in English, the name is usually shortened to Octavian.

II THE SECOND TRIUMVIRATE

GREAT WORKS OF LITERATURE

Tacitus: From The Annals of Imperial Rome

Cornelius Tacitus was a Roman historian who drew upon fact, rhetoric, psychology, and art in crafting The Annals of Imperial Rome. Only part of the original work has survived, but it represents the most complete literary record available about Rome from just before the death of Augustus, the first emperor, in AD 14 to the death of Nero, the fifth emperor, in AD 68. Although Tacitus claimed to be scrupulously impartial, he was easily roused to indignation, as demonstrated by these passages dealing with Augustus’s reign and Nero’s conspiracy to murder his mother, Agrippina.

Caesar’s assassination plunged Rome into turmoil. Octavian, determined to avenge his adoptive father and secure his own place, vied with Mark Antony, Caesar’s ambitious colleague, for power and honor. After some preliminary skirmishes, both political and military, during which Antony was driven across the Alps while Octavian was made senator and then consul, Octavian recognized the necessity of making peace with his rival. In late 43 bc, therefore, the two—joined by Antony’s ally, the general Marcus Aemilius Lepidus—met and formed the Second Triumvirate to rule the Roman domains. The alliance was sealed by a massive proscription, in which 300 senators and 200 knights—the triumvirs’ enemies—were slain. Among those killed was the aging orator Cicero.

Octavian and Antony next took the field against the leaders of Caesar’s assassins, Marcus Junius Brutus and Gaius Cassius Longinus, both of whom committed suicide in 42 bc, after being defeated at Philippi in Macedonia. By 40 bc the triumvirs had divided the Roman world among them. Octavian was in control of most of the western provinces and Antony of the eastern ones; Lepidus was given Africa. Although Antony and Octavian clashed over the control of Italy, they patched up their differences, and Octavian gave Antony his sister, Octavia, in marriage. In 36 BC, Sextus Pompeius, son of Pompey the Great and the last major enemy of the triumvirs, was eliminated. Octavian then forced Lepidus from power, while Antony was in the east fighting the Parthians.

The triumvirate was now breaking up. Having sent Octavia back to Rome, Antony soon married Cleopatra, whom Caesar had installed as queen of Egypt, and recognized Caesarion, her son by Caesar, as her coruler. This undercut Octavian’s position as the only son of Caesar, and war was inevitable. He defeated Antony and Cleopatra’s forces in a naval battle off Actium in 31 bc; they both killed themselves the following year. Caesarion was murdered. In 29 bc Octavian returned to Rome in triumph, at age 34 the sole master of the Roman world.

III THE FIRST CITIZEN

In 27 bc the Roman Senate gave Octavian the title Augustus (“consecrated,” or “holy”) by which he is known, and his reign has often been considered a dyarchy because of the Senate’s participation in it. The Senate bestowed on him a host of other titles and powers that had been held by many different officials in the Republic. In 36 bc he had been given the inviolability of the plebeian tribune, and in 30 bc he also received the tribunician power, which gave him the veto and control over the assemblies. In addition, the Senate granted him ultimate authority in the provinces; together with the consulship, which he held 13 times during his reign and which gave him control of Rome and Italy, this vested in him paramount authority throughout the empire. After the death of Lepidus he also became Pontifex Maximus (“chief priest”) with the consequent control of religion. The summation of his powers was the title princeps, or first citizen. Despite all this, and the title imperator (from which “emperor” is derived), Augustus was always careful not to take on the trappings of monarchy. In fact, he made much of the claim that he was restoring the Roman Republic.

A patron of the arts, Augustus was a friend of the poets Ovid, Horace, and Virgil, as well as the historian Livy. His love for architectural splendor was summed up in his boast that he “had found Rome brick and left it marble.” As a straitlaced adherent of Roman virtues in times of growing permissiveness, he attempted moral legislation that included sumptuary and marriage laws. In the economic field, he tried to restore agriculture in Italy.

Augustus’ third wife was Livia Drusilla, who had two sons, Tiberius and Drusus Germanicus, by a previous marriage. Augustus, in turn, had a daughter, Julia, by a previous wife. His heirs, however, died, one after another, leaving his stepson and son-in-law, Tiberius, to succeed him when he died at Nola on August 19, ad 14.

IV EVALUATION

Both ancient and modern writers have been ambivalent about Augustus. Some have condemned his ruthless quest for power, especially his part in the proscription at the time of the triumvirate. Others, even such a Republican diehard as Tacitus, have admitted his good points as a ruler. Modern scholars sometimes criticize his unscrupulous methods and compare him to 20th-century authoritarians, but they usually recognize his genuine achievements.

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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Narona Narona Narona was the name of the ancient Roman city that was located in the Neretva valley in present day Croatia. It was part of the Roman province of Dalmatia. The city was established after the Illyrian Wars [1] and was located on the alluvial planes, between present day city of Metković and village of Vid. It was founded as Hellenistic emporium in c. 3rd/2nd century B.C., first time mentioned in the chapter 24 of the Periplus of Pseudo-Scylax. Narona became the major Roman stronghold in the 1st century BC [2]. In the 6th century AD it came under Byzantine rule. The settlement ceased to be in 7th century after the arrival of Slavic tribes in the region.

In 1995 a Roman temple building was discovered, which had been dedicated by the governor Dolabella and contained statues of the emperors Claudius and Vespasian, as well as two of Augustus and his wife Livia. The statues had been vandalized in the 4th century: they were lying on the floor and their heads had been broken off. The heads of Vespasian and one of the Livias had been acquired in the surrounding area by Arthur Evans in 1878. The heads were reunited with their bodies, and the shrine's statues. The famous Roman statues have toured major European museums.

The first and perhaps greatest of the Roman emperors, Augustus ended a bloody civil war, ruled with wisdom and power, and united and kept peace in Rome for many years.

Augustus was born with the name "Octavian." Well educated in philosophy, rhetoric, and military skills as a boy, he was adopted by his uncle Julius Caesar and became his heir. When Caesar was assassinated, Octavian raised an army to claim his inheritance and avenge his uncle's murder. At the battle of Actium in 31 BC, he defeated the last of his opponents, Mark Anthony, and took control of Rome.

To legitimate his power, the Senate named him Imperium proconsulare maius infinitum in 23 BC, which gave him control over the provinces and the army. He saw taking control as the only way to sustain the empire. Even though it was a nominally a republic, he ran it as an autocracy. He acted in the name of the Senate, and the Senate reflected his will to keep people satisfied that the government was working together.

Augustus also kept the people satisfied with their leader and proud of Rome. He built temples to encourage and place importance in Roman religion. He was a patron of the arts, gladly spending money to improve the artwork of Rome, and encouraged the wealthy class to do the same. To improve the moral climate of the empire, Augustus tried to revive the traditional Roman religion. He also tried to fortify the traditional Roman family by established laws which punished adultery and required marriage and the remarriage of widows.

To more effectively govern the empire, he developed an imperial civil service. To more effectively govern the city of Rome, he divided it into 14 wards, and organized a bureaucracy to control them. The Urban cohorts were his police force for the wards, and either senators or Augustus himself served as ward leaders.

The military was probably the focal point of his leadership. He had a great military mind, and used his military strength well. He organized the military with himself at the head, and used it to control the frontier regions of the Roman empire as well as invade new countries. Among his claims made include Spain, Gaul, Egypt, and Armenia. He also signed a peace treaty with Parthia, showing he used wisdom as well as aggression.

Augustus died with honor, and was remembered well by his people. He gave Roman control to his stepson Tiberius for he had no other living male offspring. He was a great leader for the Roman empire. His wisdom and intelligence benefited the people of his empire, for he was a strong as well as fair ruler.

More info:

Gaius Octavianus was born on September 23, 63 B.C. His parents were Caius Octavianus, a praetor, and Atia, a niece of the great Julius Caesar by his sister Julia. At the age of four, his father died. In 53 B.C., at the age of twelve, he delivered his first funeral oration for his grandmother, Julia. At this same age, he began his first priesthood.

Caesar became fond of his great nephew. Octavian even celebrated a few of Caesar's triumphs with him in Rome. Octavius was never possessed strength, and when Caesar saw this weakness, he offered to give him military training at Apollonia, in Epirus. Here, he studied not only the arts of war, but philosophy. While at Apollonia at the age of eighteen, Caesar was assassinated.

Rise to Power

Caesar had willed the position of emperor to Octavian. Octavian traveled to Rome, where he had to deal with his rival, Marc Antony . Antony was Caesar's best friend and had decided that he wanted all of the power. Even though Octavian was willed the position of emperor, Antony still felt that it should have been his. The Senate, however, thought differently. They were anxious to snub the ambitious Antony, so they made Octavian a senator and asked for his aid in the wars that had begun as a result of Caesar's assassination. Also, Octavian befriended M. Tullius Cicero, a fierce foe of Antony. Tensions between Marc Antony and Octavian eventually erupted into open warfare. The decisive battle came in April of 43 B.C., when Octavian fought Antony at Mutina. Octavian won, and as a result, Octavian's troops demanded that he be given a consulship. The Senate reluctantly agreed and Gaius Octavian became Gaius Julius Caesar Octavianus.

Career

Even though Octavian had defeated Antony, there still was unrest within the city. In order to obtain peace and ensure that there would be no more fighting, Octavius formed the Second Triumvirate with Antony and Marcus Lepidus on November 27, 43 B.C. From this deal, Octavian assumed rule over Africa, Sicily, and Sardinia, leaving Antony control of the East. However, they did not come into power until they defeated the Liberators, the assassins of Julius Caesar, at Philippi in 42 B.C.

For political reasons, Octavian married Scribonia. She was a relative of Sextus Pompey, the son of Pompey the Great. Regardless of the importance of the marriage, Octavian eventually divorced Scribonia and married Livia Drusilla . He would live with her for the rest of his life. Meanwhile, Antony married Octavia, Octavian's sister. This move was supposed to help out the relationship between Octavian and Antony.

After the death of Caesar, Cleopatra fled from Rome and went back to Egypt. However, in 41 B.C., Antony summoned Cleopatra to Tarsus to see if she had aided in the conspiracy. According to Plutarch, she didn't just meet him, she seduced him:

"She came sailing up the river Cydnus in a ship with a golden

stern and outspread sails, while silver oars beat time to the music

of flutes, fifes, and harps. She lay under a canopy of gold cloth,

dressed as Venus in a picture, while beautiful boys like painted

cupids stood on each side and fanned her. Her maids were dressed

like sea nymphs and graces, and some were steering the rudder

while others worked the ropes. All manner of sweet perfumes

were wafted ashore." *

In 37 B.C., the Triumvirate signed the Treaty of Tarentum. According to its terms, Octavian took the West, Antony received the East, and Lepidus governed Africa. This would be the last treaty that the Second Triumvirate would sign. Soon thereafter, Antony divorced Octavia and ran off to Egypt to be with Cleopatra. This enraged Octavian. However, he could not chase Antony to Egypt because a pirate, Sextus Pompey, was threatening Rome.

Finally in 36 B.C., Marcus Agrippa, Octavian's skillful right-hand man, defeated Sextus Pompey at Naulochus. Now Octavian could deal with Antony. However, another problem arose: Lepidus, the third person in the Triumvirate, feared that he was going to lose all of his power, so he revolted. Octavian now had to suppress this revolt before confronting Antony. Octavian defeated Lepidus with no problem and took away his legions and sent him into exile in Circeii. Now, there were only two people in charge of the Roman Empire.

Octavian used his head, though, and decided that a war was not the answer. Antony returned to Rome and took the title of Imperator. He decided that the Empire's boundaries were most important, so he staged campaigns at Illyricum and Dalmatia (35-33 B.C.) and then proclaimed the boundaries to be safe. While this was happening, Agrippa began a beautification program, which gained a lot of popularity for Octavian.

In October of 32 B.C., the western provinces swore allegiance to Octavian. War seemed inevitable and everyone knew it. Octavian tried to lure Antony and his army to an area in southern Italy for a decisive battle. Fearing treachery, Antony left Italy and set up his headquarters at Actium, off the coast of Greece. Antony overlooked a spot near Actium where Octavian could land his ships, so Octavian decided to ferry his troops to Actium.

On the morning of September 2, 31 B.C., the battle of Actium began. Antony had over five hundred ships, including one of Cleopatra's squadrons. Nonetheless, a few of Octavian's smaller, faster ships defeated Antony's heavily armored, slow moving ships. Upon seeing this, Cleopatra turned her ships around and sailed off toward Egypt. When Antony saw this he left his troops in the heat of battle and chased a woman!

Before running off after Cleopatra, Antony had nineteen legions, twelve thousand horses, a huge navy, provinces with inexhaustible resources of treasure and manpower, and a capital in Alexandria that rivaled Rome in wealth and splendor. When he ran away, he lost all of this. Once he was gone, Octavian, with the TREMENDOUS help from his skillful advisor, Agrippa, defeated Antony's forces.

- Whether this was the exact time that Antony fell in love with Cleopatra VII is unknown, however, it is rather odd that she would be so alluring just to meet him upon his request!

Sole Rule of the Empire

After the battle of Actium in 31 B.C., Octavian had complete control of the empire. The wealth of Egypt flowed into his private treasury, and he was now undoubtedly the most powerful man in Rome. He had sixty legions at his command to control the empire. Once he obtained full authority, he held the consulship from 31-27 B.C. In 27 B.C. he gave up his powers to the Senate, saying that he would no longer be consul because his perpetual tenure of the office was causing offense and was keeping all of the other nobles out of the consulship. His adherents had been carefully briefed to say that Rome could not do without his services, and the people followed these cries and urged him to become dictator.

However, he said no. He declined because he knew that if he became dictator, the same thing could happen to him that happened to Caesar: he would have been killed. So, he gave up the dictatorship, but he remained consul and received special command, called imperium, of the most important provinces, which were Spain, Gaul, Syria, and a few others. He also remained the commander-in-chief of the Roman army. Moreover, the imperial provinces, which he did not directly govern, were governed by legates who were directly appointed by Octavian. He also received tribuneship for life and was allowed to sit between the two consuls and speak on matters of debate. These two privileges allowed him to wage war, make treaties, and regulate Rome's relations with dependent kings of states bordering the frontiers of the empire. Finally, he was given the name Augustus as an honor for so graciously "giving away his powers." Because of his previous actions and because of the positions that he had held in Rome, Augustus had complete authority. He took the name princeps, or "first citizen," and was the undisputed first citizen for forty-five consecutive years.

However, he demonstrated his political astuteness by refusing the dictatorship and the titles that came along with it. During his reign, Augustus had an extensive building program. He built things such as the Ara Pacis, Horologium, the Forum of Augustus, the Mausoleum of Augustus , the Theater of Marcelus, the Baths of Agrippa, and the Pantheon . He also made many repairs to existing buildings. There were a couple of statues that were made of him too, the most famous being the Prima Porta.* Augustus was completely dedicated to the beautification of Rome.

To further his power, he became pontifex maximus in 12 B.C. and was named pater patriae, or father or his country, in 2 B.C. The type of government that he had set up came to be known as principate, or "rule by the first citizen." While maintaining a Republican facade, he retained complete authority suntil he died in A.D. 14. His adopted son Tiberius took over his powers as emperor.

- The Prima Porta is a larger-than-life size statue. It portrays Augustus addressing his troops. He is in his middle years with a face that is grave and firm. The center of the breastplate has a scene depicting the return of the standards captured from Crassus and Antony by the Partheans. Above, under a figure representing the sky, is the sun in his chariot preceded by the dawn with the moon giving place to them. Below is Mother Earth with a cornucopia and two children, representing the prosperity that comes with peace. On either side are Augustus' two particular divine patrons, Apollo with his lyre and Diana on a stag. The Prima Porta is currently in the Vatican.